This invention relates to a propeller mount for ships, and in particular to a propeller mount for an icebreaker.
In the past, in the design and construction of the sterns of icebreaker hulls, most attention has been directed to providing sufficient clearance between the hull and the propellers that ice passes therebetween. In general, the result has been open stern designs, which do not force ice in any particular direction. Stern designs utilizing nozzles surrounding the propellers are considered to be undesirable for icebreakers, because nozzle clogging is likely to occur when large pieces of ice are drawn against the nozzle by suction. The result is vibration and a decrease in the thrust generated by the propellers.
There is nothing in the Canadian or U.S. patent literature suggesting a solution to the problem of propeller fouling by ice. The object of the present invention is to at least partially alleviate this problem.